At least 4 people were killed and 16 others injured early Sunday after gunfire erupted at South Carolina bar shooting and Grill on St. Helena Island, authorities said.
The Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office reported that the shooting occurred around 1 a.m. at the bar located on Dr. Martin Luther King Drive, roughly an hour north of Savannah, Georgia.
When deputies arrived, they found a large crowd with multiple victims suffering from gunshot wounds. Four people were pronounced dead at the scene, officials said.
Although authorities initially reported 4 dead and 20 injured, they later clarified that the total included the fatalities. Of those hospitalized, four victims remain in critical condition.
According to the sheriff’s office, hundreds of people had been gathered at the venue when the South Carolina bar shooting began. Many victims and witnesses ran to nearby properties and businesses seeking shelter. Some of the injured were taken to hospitals by ambulance, while others arrived at emergency rooms on their own.
No arrests have been made, but investigators are questioning a person of interest. The identities of the deceased have not yet been released pending notification of family members.
“This is a tragic and difficult incident for everyone,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement. “We ask for patience as we continue to investigate.”
South Carolina bar shooting
Willie Turral, the bar’s owner, told that chaos broke out after shots were fired outside his establishment during a local high school alumni event.
“I’m not sure exactly what happened the South Carolina bar shooting occurred outside, and I was inside,” Turral said. “But from inside, I could hear what sounded like machine-gun fire.”
He described a scene of panic as people rushed for cover:
When he went outside, he saw paramedics performing CPR on victims in the parking lot.
“It’s unreal,” Turral said, adding that he had hired professional security for the event. One of the victims killed, he said, was a security officer and the son of his father’s best friend.
“We spoke the night before,” Turral said quietly. “So it was real close to home.”
